The Cubs have been connected quite strongly to the Guardians this offseason for a number of different players or packages, including Shane Bieber, Emmanuel Clase (here), and Josh Naylor (here). Even as a former Cy Young winner, Bieber represents the lowest return of the trio due to his higher projected salary, diminished performance, and single year of control. That said, he’s still a very competent pitcher who it was expected would net Cleveland decent value in trade.
According to Jeff Ellis of Locked On Guardians, however, there’s a growing sense that trading Bieber now would be “almost a salary dump.